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Did you know that you can get free breakfasts, room upgrades and $100 of in-hotel credit if you book through a specific website or luxury travel advisor? This is over and above your usual status benefits that you get when you book stays in these hotels.

There are several great ways to book stays at nicer hotels — better than booking with the hotel directly.

Book through Visa Signature Hotels and perks are a little less generous, they used to be a strategic site to book through for major cities because free parking was included but that no longer seems to be listed among benefits.

You don’t need a specific credit card, though, some of the best benefits are accessible directly through travel agents that are part of the Virtuoso network, booking through them gets you upgrades, meals, late check-out and other perks. It’s the opposite of what we’re trained to think. Hotels give you more for booking through an agent than if you book on their own website.

Booking into certain Intercontinental properties through a Virtuoso agent gets you Club Lounge access, something not provided by Royal Ambassador status.

This really works for more upscale hotel brands, and won’t get you benefits at a Hilton Garden Inn. That said it works at more hotels than you may realize, including higher end Hyatt, Hilton, Starwood and Marriott properties and not just top luxury hotels around the world.

Park Hyatt New York

Some years ago the Virtuoso folks reached out to see if I was interested in becoming a Virtuoso agent myself after I was included for the first time as one of Conde’ Nast Traveler‘s ‘World’s Top Travel Specialists’ for my award booking service.

I didn’t go down that road myself. However a reader asked that I pass along their information as someone who can help you get more benefits on your hotel stays.

Justin Harrison with his wife Margaret have a boutique operation that’s part of Four Seasons Preferred Partners, Ritz-Carlton STARS, Mandarin Oriental FAN club and many more.

More From View from the Wing

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

Comments

Timely article! I was just looking at some rates direct and via visa signature. Typically rates are similar but I thought that you are picking one set of benefits or the other.

I’ve heard from Kempinski that I have to book direct to get my “discovery benefits” and haven’t checked with Hilton re Conrad hotels but read on site that for points and status perks etc you need to book direct.

If i was saying somewhere where I’ve no interest in status like an IC or a Hyatt though then the above is essential reading and a no brainer as you’re getting the same perks as status plus an f and b credit.

About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.

Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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